The greenhouse gases emitted by a fully developed LNG industry in northern B.C. would exceed those of the oilsands, critics say. Above is Suncor’s oilsands mine on the banks of the Athabasca River.

Photograph by: Jeff McIntosh
, THE CANADIAN PRESS

B.C.’s greenhouse gas emission targets will go up in smoke if the province gives the go-ahead to development of major liquefied natural gas plants on the north coast, critics charged Wednesday.

“We won’t meet our greenhouse gas targets if we are going to develop these large LNG plants,” Green party leader Jane Sterk said in an interview. “It means we are deciding we will no longer deal with climate change.”

Sterk said the province should be developing renewable energy, not rushing to export as much natural gas as possible. “If we are going to take climate change seriously, now is the time to do it.”

BG Group this week filed a summary project description with the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency to build a facility — Prince Rupert LNG Limited — on Ridley Island capable of producing 21 million tonnes of LNG per year.

The NDP, Liberals and B.C. Conservatives have all come out in favour of northern B.C.’s potentially lucrative LNG industry.

The Liberals want to seize a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to ramp up exports and bring economic prosperity to the province. The NDP support the industry, but want to ensure best practices are met by LNG exporters and fracking companies. The Conservatives support increasing LNG exports to benefit the rest of the province.

Energy Minister Rich Coleman announced last month that the provincial government has received four “new major international LNG project proposals” to develop liquefied natural gas export terminals, all in the Prince Rupert area.

That’s on top of six multibillion-dollar export facilities already proposed for Kitimat and Prince Rupert, and at least two others that are in preliminary stages of consideration. However, NDP energy critic John Horgan has accused the government of misleading the public by presenting the proposals as finalized projects that will play a major role in B.C.’s future economy.

BG Group says it would require 800 megawatts of energy to run refrigeration compressors and to run the facility — power it will get from burning natural gas. By comparison, the proposed Site C dam would have a capacity of 900 megawatts.

“That would be about three-quarters of the electricity use of all the homes in B.C. — for one plant,” said Tyler Bryant, energy policy analyst with the David Suzuki Foundation. “It runs all day, every day, constantly refrigerating.”

Of the prospect of several major gas-powered LNG facilities, he said: “What this energy investment really means is completely eviscerating B.C.’s climate progress, with no clear efforts to address it in any way.

“B.C. would go from a leader — the only carbon tax in the western hemisphere, ambitious carbon-reduction targets, and an incredibly clean electricity system — and turn ourselves into a giant fossil-fuels exporter.”

Matt Horne, director of the Pembina Institute’s climate change program, estimated that LNG projects on the books for northern B.C. could increase greenhouse gas emissions by 62 million tonnes per year. That would include the emissions from the LNG plants and the associated natural gas extraction and processing.

B.C.’s climate action plan has a target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 33 per cent below 2007 levels by 2020 and 80 per cent by 2050. That equates to reducing emissions to 40 million tonnes by 2020 and 12 million tonnes by 2050, he said.

“I can’t see any way the province would be able to meet its targets and proceed with any significant LNG development,” Horne said. “That’s the reality of the scale of LNG.”

Alberta’s oilsands emissions are currently estimated at 48 million tonnes per year, Bryant said. “You start to get a sense of scale here. This is massive.”

Bryant is not convinced by the argument that LNG will create a greener world by presenting a cleaner option to, say, coal-fired energy.

“There may be some possible nugget of truth there,” he said. “But it means nothing if there is no coordinated carbon policy between the seller and buyer of natural gas, if there isn’t commitments on either side to say we will use this to offset coal or will place a B.C.-equivalent carbon tax on the burning of this fuel in, say, Japan or China....”

Four major energy companies have either received export permits or have filed project descriptions for LNG plants.

BG Group’s summary description notes that the emission of greenhouse gases is “one factor that has the potential to effect climate change.” Further study during the environmental assessment process will seek to determine more precisely the project’s greenhouse gas effects, the summary stated, with a number of mitigation measures to be considered during project design, construction and operation.

The company added it established an air quality monitoring station in the community of Port Edward in August 2012 to provide a reference for air quality in the area, which was well below B.C. air-quality objectives.

“The project description is where we are at in the process right now,” BG spokesman David Byford said in a phone interview. “We’re early in the process here.” BG says it is planning to build in two phases, starting in 2016.

The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers refused to comment on the issue. “Your request is just too close to the political issues discussed as part of the election in B.C.,” said spokesman Markus Ermisch.

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